Celestron C5 SC XLT Telescope

If you are looking for a small and light telescope with great capabilities, then compact catadioptric designs are definitely worth considering. The C5 SC is a 5" aperture Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope. The tube weighs only 3 kg and is 330mm long - it's hard to find a more mobile telescope.

The Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope with a mirror diameter of 127 mm and a focal length of 1250 mm consists of a primary mirror, an aspheric corrector plate, a secondary mirror, and an angled eyepiece. Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes generally have a shorter focal length than Maksutov telescopes of comparable aperture, making them more versatile. Moreover, the focal ratio of these telescopes can be reduced to f/6.3 using a special focal reducer, which is mounted in the eyepiece focuser. SCT telescopes are short, relatively light, and at large apertures, significantly more practical to use than Newtonian telescopes. Focusing is done, as in Maksutov telescopes, with a knob on the back of the telescope; turning the knob moves the telescope's mirror forward or backward, which changes the position of the focus at the optical tube's exit. The telescope's optics are coated with StarBright XLT coatings, which increase light transmission by 16% compared to traditional coatings!

This telescope allows for quite advanced observations of the Moon and planets, and under dark skies, it will show numerous deep-sky objects such as open clusters, globular clusters, planetary nebulae, and bright galaxies. The small minimum focusing distance also allows for interesting daytime observations. The Celestron C5 SC is an excellent instrument used in professional nature photography; the easy camera connection (all that's needed is an appropriate T-adapter and T-Ring) encourages even amateur photographers to try capturing unforgettable views of nature.

The tube is equipped with a standard dovetail bar and also has a 1/4" thread, allowing it to be mounted on a photographic tripod. The set also includes a prismatic diagonal giving an upright image, a 6x30 finderscope, and a 25mm eyepiece.